The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1887-07-02
A MAN WHO USED TO DRINK.
a Temperance Lecture Based on His
Own Experience.
From the New York Times

~
drinking, smoking, and talking shop"
Tho conversation had varied somewhat from
its customary vein that morning, and after
drifting about in a deSultorv way had
finally settled upon the subject of temper
auce with one of our office companions
figuring as the horrible example," While
we were discussing his infrmities the object
Of our by no means gentle criticisms came
in, and a horrible example he was. Looking
neither to the right nor TO the left he
walked with evident signs of physical weak
ness to the bar, drank a tumblerful of LIQUOR
and Immediately retraced his steps to the
street.
''Did you notice the size of that drink ?'
asked the moderate drinlSer of our quartette;
she has been on this spree ten DAVIS and told
me yesterday he couldn't get sober Small
wonder he can't get sober, firing cartridges
of that calibre into himself. advised him
TO stop"
''For a man in his condition to get sober
isn't as easy of accomplishment as you may
think" said old Bill Robertson, speaking for
the first time in almost an hour. i've been
there myself and know what Pm talking
about. Advising a man to sober up is about
the cheapest form of doing good know of,
and in most cases the least productive of
favorable results. Our friend will have to
resort to pretty harsh treatment to get
Strengthened up, If something doesn't super
vene to brighten him into sobriety, as it
did in my case"
Tell us the story, Bill" we chorused.
''Well, it isn't much of story but it is
true one, and though it happened a good
many years ago, Pm not likely to forget it.
SO let's have fresh cigar and I'll tell you
how | became so etfectually sobered UP that
/ haven't from that day to this felt the
slightest inclinations to take drink"
Lighting a cigar and taking sip of lem
onade from a glass at his elbow the old fell
low I'VE called him old though he wasn't
above 49, told a story that pointed moral
such as few temperance orators or writers
have ever arrived at in depicting the hor-
rors of intemperance or the blessings of So
briefly.
Il had been a pretty hard drinker for
several years before | found myself on
spree that | couldn't recover from in TWEEN
ty-four hours at the farthest but as time
went on l found that my sprees were be-
coming more protracted and recovery from
them more difficult. That condition of
things / tried to account for by assuming
that the average quality of the whisky had
deteriorated, and probably was right, but
nevertheless [ kept going from bad to worse.
''In the fall Of 1868 / left the military
service in Virginia, and, after settling my
accounts at the War Department and re-
ceiving several months back salary, came
to New York But before leaving Wash
ington / laid the foundation for the most
persistent, long-drawn-out, riveted and
clinched drunk that ever took hold of a
fellow and wouldn't let go.
Arriving in New York hunted up my
old friends-I had no difficulty in finding
them, in the condition of my finances-and
before | had been in the city week | was
hopelessly drunk and broke. / say hope
lessly drunk because, though the fact may
not be generally appreciated, it is more
difficult for a man who has been drunk a
week or two to get sober without money
than it is for him to continue his spree in
definitely on the same unsound financial
basis. The many little things man needs
as substitutes for rum and to build him up
cannot be obtained without money, while
liquor can be as easily procured by a man
of large acquaintance as sand on the sea-
shore or poor accommodations at a high
priced summer boarding house.
"Well, as / have said found myself
drunk and broke, and | also found myself
DESTROYS of getting sober and going to work.
Most of you, presume, would say that |
gratifed my desire within the next twenty
four hours, but you would be wrong;
didn't, nor did accomplish the desired re-
suit within the next two months.
whats that9 Couldn't have tried very
hard9 Why, man, did nothing but try.
] couldn't sleep couldn't eat, couldn't think.
Often after lying awake three or four hours
/ would lose myself in sleep and awake
thinking had slept several hours only to
find that hadn't been asleep two minutes.
At other times I'd awake with a start,
fancyAg had heard noise like thunder
clap or That somebody was pacing heavily
up and down the room, merely to discover
that there hadn't been noise louder than
the tread OF fly on pane of glass, and
that | wasstark alone.
"Finally got SO that / was afraid to be
left alone, and though might be ever so
much exhausted physically, | wouldn't 90
to bed. The only moments of comfort and
security experienced were when was
under the influence of liquor, and the only
meals swallowed were taken after | pre-
pared my stomach for their retention by
filling it about half full of whisky.
Zone afternoon in the middle of Novem-
Der was walking aimlessly down Broad
way when CHANGED to meet an old friend,
a railroad man, and TO him / told the story
of my condition, concluding it with "a re-
quest for a pass to Cincinnati. Why |
wanted to go there / can't tell even now,
but | wanted to go solnewhere-to run
away from myself, if possible. The rail
roads weren't connected through in those
days as they are now, and the best my friend
could do was to give me pass to Buffalo,
but he also gave me letters which procured
me passes the rest of the way, and left
New York that night accompanied by two
bottles of whisky, a clean shirt and three
ugly little red and green devils that had
logged my more sober footsteps during the
previous week. Recourse to the contents Of
the bottles had the effect to dispense the
devils for the night at least, and in due
course Of time and circumstance | arrived
in Cincinnati alone, the devils having EVIL
IDENTIFY missed connection somewhere.
1.-THE change Of scene seemed to do me
good, but | was still Il long way from being
the same man who had left Washington two
months before in excellent health and ebuil-
lent spirits, and an equally great distance
from the'goal of sobriety. However i realized
the necessity of obtaining employment at
once, as | did not know a soul in the town,
and my financial affairs were in very en-
barrassing condition. / think | had less
than u dollar when this prudential sugges-
ton crept upon me, and III fuTtherance of
its behest made application for situation
at the first Office | came to.
Fortunately the proprietors were as anx-
ious to secure help as l was to get into pc
sition of self-sustenance, and they didn't
look me over very carefully SO ! was en-
gagged to report for duty that night which
| did. For obvious reasons / drank very
sparingly before going to work and felt
very snaky as the night wore on. | tried
hard TO overcome my nervousness by close
application to my work, and had almost de
hldel myself irt0 tho belief that I WOud